Survival of the Fittest
by manicdora
Summary: Four years have passed since the dreadful island, and Ralph finally returns back to school after intensive therapy. Will that be enough to survive when he meets up with his old enemy, Jack Merridew? Or, will he lose? It's all about the survival of the fittest.
1. Intimidation

Hello you beautiful person reading this story! Thanks for clicking on it. If you'd leave a little review for me in order how to make the story better, I'd greatly appreciate it. :)

It's rated T for now, but I actually might put M on it later.

Also, _if you want to see how I picture the characters_, click the link on my profile page!

Disclaimer: I do not know own LOTF or the characters... which I'm slightly okay with.

R&R & Enjoy!

* * *

The only word that seemed to describe these appointments was 'repetitive'. At least, that was what Ralph believed these weekly sessions were. Ralph was more grateful however. He only had to be present only twice a week for an hour instead of everyday for an hour. Granted, that required an excessive amount of begging and pleading on Ralph's part towards his parents and his therapist which eventually both parties allowed.

Now, Ralph was in the familiar room with the same familiar man. He was quite old, and Ralph was actually annoyed to come to this mans' office; for the therapist had trouble hearing everything Ralph had said to him. Although, everything that he asked was in a simple routine.

_How are you today, Ralph?_

_Good._

_That's good. Had any nightmares last night?_

_Nope._

_Excellent! Wonderful! Wait, you did say 'no', correct?_

It had gone like that every time Ralph had attended these appointments that his parents (especially his mother) and his primary care doctor insisted upon. He could remember their words clearly: _'Someone who had gone through such a traumatic experience such as your-self certainly needs therapy. Or else you'd be heading off to the loony bin!' _Being twelve at the time, threatening to be sent to the loony bin was enough of a motivation to go to therapy. Over the years however, it became tedious. Asking the same questions over and over again was painfully boring to the point that Ralph began lying to his therapist so that he would be able to leave his therapist's care sooner. If Ralph couldn't handle a couple bad dreams then he was certainly weak.

"So, how are you today, Ralph?" Ah, then it begins.

"I'm good, Sir. I actua-"

"That's good! Had any nightmares last night?"

"No, I didn't. But, I did have-"

"Wonderful! Treatment seems to have been doing wonders for you, m'boy!"

"SIR!" Ralph screamed, extremely impatient with the nearly deaf man in front of him. The man jumped slightly, and then repositioned himself in his seat so that he was sitting face-forward in front of Ralph. Ralph took in a deep breath to calm his nerves, and then looked his therapist straight in the eye. "I want to go back to school."

The therapist merely looked at Ralph, grinning and showing a tooth was missing on the right side. "You want to go back to school? That's wonderful! That's definite progress. I know your parents were worried about sending you back to school and wanted to keep doing the home schooling business, but I told 'em 'If he wants to go back to school you should let 'em!' That's right, I said that. I think it's time that you get out of your little bubble and go out in the real world!"

Ralph smiled, but only to reciprocate the feelings of excitement that the therapist had for him to 'experience the real world once again' and to get out of his 'bubble'. If the man had listened to anything Ralph had said in the past three years, Ralph had already been free from his bubble. Free from England into the real world of savagery and murder. _That _was the real world. Not this plastic, bubble wrapped, safe-zone filled with rules and limitations that society labels as the real world. No, nobody knew what the real world truly was and Ralph was extremely jealous that the people blinded of the truth didn't know.

"How old are you now?"

The therapist had interrupted Ralph from his thoughts and he jumped slightly in his seat. He secretly hoped it wasn't too noticeable. "I'm fifteen, turning sixteen in a week."

"Ah, wonderful! You'll be just in time for Year 11. Excellent. You do know that school begins in just three days, correct?"

"I do." Ralph looked at the clock discreetly, desperately hoping for the minute sign to speed up. From his impatience, it seemed to Ralph that the minute hand wasn't even moving at all. It stopped just to torment the blonde boy.

"I wish you the best of luck, m'boy. We'll still have our weekly sessions, just to make sure that you're doing all right in school. It'll be magnificent. I'm terribly glad that you're going back to school."

When the clock reached five, Ralph couldn't get out of his seat more quickly. He shook the therapist's hand briefly, grabbed his jumper, and walked quickly towards the door.

"Thank you, Sir."

* * *

Run. Breathe. Run.

It's all mechanical for Ralph as he trudges through the dense jungle. There's no other space in his smoke-filled mind for any other thoughts that he could have at the moment. What could possibly be more important than trying to survive? Rescue- a single word pops up in the back of his mind as he slows down. Maybe there is still hope for them all. No! There is no rescue. _We're all going to die here, _he takes his already tired muscles up a notch and increases his pace to the point where his muscles are on absolute fire, _I'm going to die here. I'm going to die fourth. Who dies fourth anyways? That's such a stupid number…_

Screaming and chanting snaps him out of his thoughts and makes his over-used muscles begin again. That stupid bloody chant.

Run. Breathe. Run.

It's getting harder to breathe. Something that comes so naturally to our kind, is becoming a slight torture for Ralph. Every breath he takes in fills his lungs up with smoke, when all his lungs desperately need are some oxygen. Clear, clean air. A dull pain stabs at his chest with every breath and his head is swimming within itself, threatening to send the blonde boy over. His head is basically screaming at him, _Fall over and die! _Why is his body turning against him? Why did everyone turn against him?

Run. Breathe. Run.

Ralph slumps over to a near-by tree. He can see the shore. All he has to do is run, and he'll breathe again. Once he breathes again, he can run faster. Once he runs faster, he'll be able to run from Jack and his hunters. Always running.

Run. Breathe. Run.

With a last push within himself, Ralph found himself running towards the shore. He collapsed into the sand, lying down on his back and breathing in deep amounts of air. Now, all Ralph has to wait for is rescue. That's what happened in real life, so that will happen in his dream. Right? No. Ralph's mind is much crueler to him than he likes to admit. A punishment for not being a good enough chief. A punishment for not being a good enough adult. A punishment for not being a good enough friend.

A punishment for not being good enough.

Why does his mind betray him?

A sudden weight is on top of him. Ralph knows who it is. He doesn't try to fight it anymore. His mind is a sick, twisted fiend who makes it so Ralph always loses. But, that is what happened to Ralph back then wasn't it? He lost.

"Caught you."

The voice still brings shivers down Ralph's spine. It's chilling and calm. That is the signal to Ralph that lets him know he is going to die. Strangely, Ralph is okay with this. He wants this actually. It's better to have everything end right now. Being hunted, running, breathing. Everything will stop, and that seems to be the best gift Jack Merridew could ever offer Ralph.

"Look at me."

Blue eyes meet brown.

Ralph knows this is the end.

He looks away from his captor's piercing brown eyes, and finds his way to the stick sharpened at both ends.

"I'll never stop hunting you, Ralph. No matter where you run, where you hide, I'll always find you."

_I hope it's sharp enough._

_I hope my death is quick._

The stick raises and the corners of Ralph's mouth twitch into a combination of a smile and a grimace. Everything he had ever wanted is going to end right at this moment.

Right when the stick dives-

The sound of an alarm clock made Ralph jump out of bed and land on the floor, nearly hitting his head on the bedside table. He was panting- whether that being from his nightmare or from actually jumping right out of bed, he didn't know. He wiped his forehead, knowing there would be sweat there like it had every night. Ralph looked over at the clock and saw the time being 6:30. He rubbed his eyes with his shaking hands, even though he was already awake. Now he was just waiting for the- _There it is. _

He ran to the bathroom, locking it behind him as he dove for the toilet. If there was anything that he hated from having the nightmares was the nausea. Ralph loved food, and having to give it up to Jack felt like such a betrayal from his body. He began heaving last night's half-digested dinner into the mouth of the bowl, giving it the remnants of his meal. Wiping his mouth after he was finished, Ralph glared at the bowl and flushed its remnants down the toilet.

Making his way to the sink and mirror, Ralph felt slightly light-headed. He held onto the sink counter for support as he looked at himself in the mirror. He looked thin and pail- weak. Ralph had thought that this bubble he was in was to make him stronger. No, he looked as weak as he did when he was rescued from the island.

"Stop looking so bloody weak."

The mirror didn't change as he hoped it would. The same weak figure stared back at him with big blue eyes. Sighing, Ralph splashed some cool water in his face to calm down his nerves. It only helped slightly by stopping the shaking in his hands. Ralph stared at himself for a moment once again, staring deeply into his own eyes. He didn't know what he was looking for or what he wanted to see, but he made an unsatisfied grunt. Ralph shook his head slightly and began the new routine of getting ready for school.

* * *

Why did Ralph even want to go back to school? It was noisy, the people were obnoxious, and the teachers were strict. Maybe he wanted some normalcy back into his life. What a stupid idea that was. Now, Ralph wanted nothing more to return home into his safety bubble. Not that he was scared of these people, mind you. He just didn't want to deal with them. Ralph didn't want to deal with a lot of things in life actually, school being only one of them.

The bell rang, and everyone ran like animals. As if time was hunting them itself. They had fear in their eyes and for the life of him, Ralph couldn't figure out why. Soon, the hallways had emptied out and he was left all alone in the middle of it. It was a strange, eerie kind of feeling as he walked through the scholastic wasteland. Was he supposed to be somewhere? Is that what the bell stood for?

"Excuse me young man, don't you have a class to be in?" An elder voice made Ralph jump slightly as he turned around to face the man. He looked vaguely familiar, and as Ralph was trying to place him the man's voice became more threatening. "Well, don't you?"

"Uh, yeah," Ralph stumbled as he hurriedly tried to take out his schedule from his backpack. He handed it to the man, his hand shaking slightly. "I have geography for my first class. But, I don't know where it is and I didn't know what time I had to be there for."

The man narrowed his eyes at Ralph as he snatched the schedule from Ralph. His eyes wandered down the page and his whole body stance changed from stern to a relaxed state. "Oh, you're Ralph!" Ralph nodded slowly, not knowing that his presence was meant to be known to others at this school to adults he didn't know. Or, maybe he did know this man. "Sorry for being a tad off with you back there. As the headmaster of this school I have to make sure everyone's in line." Oh, so that was where Ralph recognized him. He was the headmaster, duh. "Why don't I take you to your class?"

Ralph nodded and smiled slightly at the headmaster and followed him to where his geography class was supposedly held. When they arrived at the door, the headmaster pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Ralph. "Just give it to the teacher and they won't give you any hassle." Ralph nodded in appreciation and took the paper and turned towards the door. Before he could even wrap his hand around the handle, the principle had his hand on Ralph's shoulder which stiffened slightly under his touch. The man lifted his hand when he noticed this however, and looked at Ralph right in the eye. "How about you come see me after school in my office? I want to know how your day went."

"Oh," Ralph sounded slightly surprised, not really expecting this kindness from the headmaster. "Sure, yeah. I'll come after school."

The headmaster smiled at Ralph and shooed him off to class with his hand. Ralph returned the smile half-heartedly and turned back to open the door to his class room. He was slightly surprised to see everyone standing around on the outsides of the room, while the desks remained empty. Everyone was talking to one another, not even noticing he came into the room. The teacher noticed however, and walked up to him.

Without saying a word to her, Ralph lifted the note from the headmaster and handed it from her. She snatched it from him, reading it over and fixing her glasses as she did so. When she finished reading, she looked at Ralph and said, "Thank you for joining us, Ralph. We were just about to assign seats to everyone." The children whined loudly, which annoyed the teacher immensely. "Hush now! Ralph, you and Eric can sit in the back right there." She pointed to a two-person desk near the back of the class and Ralph trudged to the back, already disliking this class even though it technically didn't even begin.

He fell in his seat without a word to the boy next to him. He crossed his arms on his desk and burrowed his face into his arms to keep out the light and disgruntled noises of his fellow classmates. All the while just wishing he was back at home in his warm bed, in the dark where no one else could see him. Suddenly when he wasn't expecting it, Ralph was poked in the arm rather forcefully causing him to jerk in his seat.

"Sorry, you just didn't budge when I poked you the first couple of times," The boy said in a hushed tone of voice. It was slightly hard to hear him with the noise around them, but Ralph was able to make out what he was saying. He rubbed his eyes, wondering if he had seen this boy before. Ralph unmistakingly recognized him from somewhere.

He shrugged. "It's not a problem. I shouldn't really sleep in class anyways." This made the other boy smile slightly, and Ralph smiled back. "What did you want again… Uh, what's your name again?"

A flash of disappointment spread across the boy's face, but he quickly masked it when he spoke again. "I'm Eric. I just wanted to know if you remember me, Ralph. From the island?"

Realization had hit Ralph like a ton of bricks. Of course! Eric! How could he have forgotten? Actually, it was quite difficult to recognize him now, especially without Sam at his side. He had grown up- that was for sure. Eric was taller now, actually he was the same height as Ralph now. He was more toned and had nicer and more tamed black hair that swooped to the side in . However, he still had the same beautiful blue eyes that he and his brother had back in the island. Ralph figured that he was actually rather good looking now that he had actually looked at his face more closely. Wait, what the hell was he thinking? Thinking another bloke was attractive- Ralph crinkled his nose at the thought.

"Oh yeah. I remember." There was nothing really else to say after that and Ralph could feel the awkwardness of the conversation building up. Or, perhaps it was just merely building up in his head.

"I didn't know if I would ever see you again. Neither did Sam."

"Well I'm here," Ralph said slowly. He never really did like talking about the island. Who would after what happened? Every time Ralph opened up his mouth to continue this conversation, he was building up a wall that already stood between him and Eric- Sam too if he were here at the moment. It's not like one could forget being hunted and betrayed by your last remaining friends.

Eric took a quick intake of breath and looked Ralph straight in the eyes. For a moment, Ralph had thought he had seen the innocence in them. Thinking that was stupid in itself. Nobody from that island was innocent any longer.

"I wanted to say I am sorry. About being on Jack's side and hunting you. I wanted to tell you when we got on the ship, but we didn't see you. Sam and I felt so bad, Ralph. We were so scared. Of Jack, of Roger, of the Beast," Eric was talking in a whisper now, nose-to-nose with Ralph as he apologized, "I'm so sorry Ralph. We were just kids. We were so scared. I'm so sorry."

Ralph stared at Eric, who had unshed tears in his eyes which made them glisten in the light that was above them. Ralph wasn't angry at Eric, nor Sam- he just betrayed. The sincerity in Eric's voice was almost overwhelming as he engulfed Eric into a hug that silently accepted his apology. Eric tensed slightly against him, but soon relaxed and hugged him back. This was all Ralph wanted: to have his friends back on his side, to feel like he wasn't being hunted.

A loud snapping sound separated the two boys quickly. Ralph looked at their shared desk and saw the ruler that had created the loud noise and looked up to the face of its owner to find a very annoyed looking teacher. "No physical contact. Don't make me separate you two."

The other students around them howled with laughter, but Ralph and Eric merely just smiled at each other as they turned back to the attention of the teacher.

* * *

All of Ralph's classes had went by quickly, nothing particularly interesting since it was the first day of class and all of the classrooms had the same routine of going over the rules and what the students need. When lunch came, Ralph was overjoyed. The day was nearly over, and now he finally had a break from the constant teachers and annoying students. After lunch, Ralph only had one more class in between him and the comfort of his own bed. Well, also meeting up with the headmaster but that would only be about a couple of minutes.

"Ralph!"

Ralph turned his head to where he heard his name being called, and found none other than Eric waving him over to sit with him on a less populated area of the school with grass. He walked towards him, smiling at him as he took a seat next to him. "Is this where you always hang out, Eric?"

The boy shook his head and laughed a child's laugh- filled with amusement. "I still s'pose we're identical even after all these years, eh? No, I'm Sam. And, I usually don't sit around here; Eric does. He told me in one of our classes that he saw you and you looked exactly the same, all be it a little taller." Sam laughed again good-naturedly as he elbowed Ralph in a friendly manor, and Ralph couldn't help but laugh along with him. "I just had to see you for myself."

"You and your brother really must've missed me then, eh?" Ralph questioned in an amused tone of voice.

"Oh, yeah, definitely mate." Sam leaned back against a tree, in a relaxed manor as he eyed Ralph. "When we got home, all Eric and I could do was rave about you to mum and dad. We really missed you." Ralph noticed Sam's sincerity was in his eyes, not his tone of voice. His tone of voice was light, joking, care-free while his eyes told a different story; a story of regret and hopefulness. Him being hopeful that Ralph wouldn't hate him or would forgive him? Possibly.

"I missed you guys too," Ralph paused, wanting to add 'even before I got home' but decided against it. "I miss a lot of things actually."

Sam looked around for a moment before leaning towards Ralph's direction. "Look, I know Eric said he was sorry for both of us but I want you to hear it from me too, okay? I want to be your friend, Ralph. Honestly." He leaned back against his tree, looking straight into Ralph's eyes. "The past is the past, yeah?"

Sam didn't seem to be as articulate with his feelings about the matter as Eric was, but his apology was meaningful just the same. "Thanks, Sam. Thank Christ for the past," Ralph joked, and he and Sam laughed.

Eric joined in during the laughing fest and looked at them both with a puzzled expression as he set down food in the middle of all of them. "I always miss the good stuff," He complained with a small smile as he sat down next to Sam.

"No you don't. You brought the food didn't you?" Sam told him, laughing again as he took a basket of chips from the middle of the pile. Eric shoved him, making Sam nearly spill his chips. "Oi! Those are detrimental to my health!" Sam threw the basket back into the pile and tackled Eric to the ground, and soon enough the two began rolling around screaming and laughing at the same time. Ralph soon found himself laughing at their antics as well as he picked up the basket of chips from the middle pile and began eating.

It was good to be back with old friends.

* * *

Last class of the day (if it could be considered a class) was gym. Ralph wasn't particularly too excited for this class, but be it as it may, this would be one of the classes he would most likely enjoy. After getting changed from the locker room, Ralph made his way out to the field as he followed the other boys. It was still particularly warm for summer had just ended, and already he could feel himself beginning to sweat. When all of the boys had arrived, one particular boy stood out from the rest. A bright red haired boy who was talking to a slightly shorter boy with dark, jet black hair.

Ralph's heart literally dropped into his stomach and he felt himself become ill.

Jack and Roger.

It was them.

Ralph didn't know how he had recognized them so easily. Perhaps it was countless hours of Ralph trying to picture how Jack looked like in case he ever ran into him in the future. In order to know who to run from. Why was he here? At this school? He and Roger both should be in an asylum right now, not in a damn school!

Jack was laughing at something Roger had been saying, and as he turned around to examine everyone around him his eyes met with Ralph's. Ralph wanted to scream, run, even cry (even though he'd probably do that in the privacy of his own room) instead of being stuck here with Jack. Be it, a good amount of space away from him. As Ralph was about to turn his head away, Jack gave him a sick, sort of not right smile to him. Ralph just wished he could disappear as he turned away from Jack to face the coach who was now about to speak.

"All right, you lil' girls. We're gonna play a game of football! Shirts versus skins!" Half of the boys, including Jack and Roger, immediately took their shirts off. A whistle blew off and a ball was flying in the air. "Game on!"

Everything after that remained a blur to Ralph as everyone around him turned into savage beasts as they chased after the ball. It reminded him so much of the game that Jack and his hunters used to play around the fire. _The fire that should've been for the signal fire instead of their stupid meat. The fire that was made with Piggy's glasses. Piggy's dead. Dead. Oh my God, Simon… He didn't deserve to die. We killed him. We killed them all. Murderers. Jack is a murderer. Jack is going to murder me. I am being hunted. Run, breathe, run! _Ralph's thoughts were racing, leaving him unmoving in the middle of the field to be totally exposed.

Suddenly, he was crashing down into the hard unforgiving floor. The whistle went off like it was screaming, and Ralph felt like screaming as he held onto his head and felt a warm, sticky substance coming from an open cut on his forehead. He tried to move, but a body was on top of him. Ralph grunted, and his eyes went wide as Jack began getting off of him.

"Shouldn't be a sitting duck."

"Are you okay?" The coach came running towards them both, but Ralph couldn't answer. Or better yet didn't want to answer. The coach noticed the blood on his forehead and looked at Jack, "Take him to the nurse."

Jack did as he was told, which seemed to surprise Ralph even more then he already was, and helped to lift Ralph off the ground. Jack placed a hand on Ralph's shoulder, and when Ralph felt that he himself was steady he shoved Jack's hand off of his shoulder and began to walk towards the nurse. For a while, Jack was behind him until he decided to catch up and walk by Ralph's side.

"Who would've guessed that we'd both end up in the same school together, eh? Let alone the same gym class," Jack was talking, but Ralph wasn't listening. All he heard was the stupid chant in his head in Jack's voice. _Kill the pig, Cut her throat, Spill her blood. _Ralph felt light headed, but he didn't know if it was from the blood loss, the sudden anxiety he was feeling from being so close to Jack, or perhaps both.

"I told you I'd find you," Jack said cooly. "I doubt you believed me back then huh?"

Ralph didn't want to talk to him. Or answer his stupid questions. He wanted to be home, curl up in a ball, and scream. Ralph wouldn't show Jack that weakness, or give him the gratification of talking back to Jack. No. Ralph would remain silent and defy Jack that way. He could forgive SamnEric but he could never forgive Jack. Not like he'd ever apologize or own up to anything that he did when he was at the island.

"I'm talking to you, Ralph."

Ralph continued walking down the hall, quickening his steps to try and get to the nurse's office more quickly. He wanted to be away from Jack, but his feet wouldn't move quickly enough. Suddenly Ralph felt a hand on his shoulder as he was roughly pushed back against the wall. Jack's hand pressing him back and his leg was in between Ralph's leg, leaving Ralph in a rather awkward position under him.

"When I told you that I'd never stop hunting you, I meant it," Jack's face was close to Ralph's and he could feel Jack's breathing on his lips. He wanted to shut his eyes, but Ralph wouldn't allow himself to be like this in front of Jack. So, instead he looked straight into his eyes and tried to look past him. "Just give up now, Ralph. This is _my _school. You can't escape me."

Eventually, Ralph managed to push Jack away from him as he quickly walked past him. What would happen if he gave up? Gave up what exactly? The hunt? Why was Jack still hunting Ralph? Why did Jack still hate him so much even after four years have gone by? So many questions were filling through Ralph's brain, but one thing Ralph did know for sure was that he was never going to give up to Jack Merridew. Ever.

"I think I can find the nurse's office on my own, thanks."

* * *

As Ralph left the nurse's office with a newly bandaged forehead and some pain medication, Ralph made his way to the headmaster's office like he had promised. To be quite honest, Ralph didn't want to be here at all, but whenever Ralph made a promise he'd make sure to keep it. He knocked on the door, and walked in to find the headmaster seeming to expect him as he sat on his chair face-forward and hands intertwined on his desk in front of him.

"Take a seat, Ralph! Oh, my, what happened to your head?" He asked, watching Ralph as he sat down in the chair across from him.

_Oh you know, my old enemy decided to give me a little 'Welcome Back' present._

"It was a football incident. All patched up now."

The headmaster smiled at Ralph, and tilted his head slightly. "I just wanted to know how your first day of school was, Ralph."

_Oh, it was wonderful really. I saw two people who wanted to kill me. One who actually tried it at gym today, and threatened me in the hall. Forever being hunted is always just a thrill._

"It was good. I met up with some of old friends."

_Well, that was practically the only good part of the day._

"Oh that's wonderful, Ralph!" The headmaster was beginning to remind Ralph so much of his therapist: Good intentions, boring output. "Glad you had a good first day. That's all I wanted to know. I hope you enjoy your time here, I really hope you do."

Ralph stood smiled a false smile. "Of course, sir. It's a wonderful school."

_I really hope I can just survive through it._


	2. Deteriorating

WELL HELLO. It's been like.. a couple of months now, yeah? ^-^ Heh. Sorry about that. I PROMISE I'LL TRY TO UPDATE MORE REGULARLY. (Meaning that I won't take months to update.) ANYWAY, here is chapter 2!

Disclaimer: I do not know own LOTF or the characters.

* * *

As Ralph sat on the bench, he decided he _really_ hated gym. Not because of the fact Jack and Roger were there… Okay, that was a major reason as to why he hated gym. Despite that fact, Ralph actually hated the sports. Which was odd to him because of all the things about school he thought he'd like, he was sure he'd like this class. It turned out to be the opposite.

Every team sport was horrible. He believed all of his teammates were out to get him or secretly laughed whenever he fell over his own feet. One may say Ralph was being rather paranoid, but Ralph was sure of his suspicions of his teammates deceptions. Roger would purposely kick the ball at Ralph, which earned him a couple of bruises. It wasn't that painful, but it was sure annoying on Ralph's part.

Oh, and Jack. It wasn't annoying to have him in gym; it was more unsettling then anything. It felt as if he was watching Ralph all the time. Every time Ralph would look over to Jack, Jack would be looking at him. Though he'd quickly avert his gaze and act as if he hadn't been watching him in the first place.

It was a bit creepy, to say the least.

When the bell had rung, Ralph quickly got on his feet. He walked as fast as the other's, trying to make it out of there before everyone else. Since he hadn't played, he decided he didn't actually need to shower at school. Plus, since this was his last class he could head straight home. That sounded like a perfect plan.

Nothing ever went Ralph's way anyway.

Feeling a cold hand on his shoulder, Ralph tensed. As he was turned around, he met with icy, cold blue eyes bearing into his own brown ones. It sent a chill through his spine. It was unmistakable to who this was and Ralph inwardly sighed. Of all the people to stop him, it _had_ to be Jack. Though after several seconds of just staring at each other, which Ralph found to be a bit odd, he swallowed dryly and stood up a bit straighter.

"What do you want, Jack?"

For a moment, Jack looks confused. As if he doesn't know what it is he wanted. Ralph noted that his own expression and demeanor had changed from the last time they both had talked as well. He wasn't aggressive, he wasn't in his face, and he wasn't threatening. If anything, Jack seemed a bit awkward. Not knowing what to say, the fact that he still had his hand on Ralph's shoulder…

"I just wanted to talk to you." Ralph narrowed his eyes at Jack's words. _This obviously wasn't going to end well_. Jack quickly took notice of his expression. "I wanted to talk to you because… _I need something from you_."

"And you think you're just going to get it?"

Jack laughed. "Obviously not. I know how you are Ralph." A brief paused was held between them which made Ralph uncomfortable. Anything revolving Jack made Ralph uncomfortable however. "Look, I just-"

Before Jack could continue on with whatever it was he was saying, Ralph abruptly cut him off. "No. Whatever it is no, Jack," he hissed through clenched teeth, pushing Jack's hand off his shoulder finally. "Do you really think you're going to be able to come to me after everything you did and just say you need something from me? _Not a chance_."

Jack's face seemed to have hardened at the other's words. "Look, Ralph, about the other day…"

"Are you kidding me!? No, Jack, no! Just piss off."

Ralph turned around then, wondering why he didn't just walk away in the first place. He was turned around yet again by the familiar grip of the other's fingers on his shoulder. Though this time instead of a reasonable distance between the two, Jack's face was right in front of Ralph's. Their noses brushed against each other's and Ralph could feel the other's warm breath against Ralph's lips. They were so close, Ralph didn't know where to look.

"Why won't you give me a chance?!" Jack asked, nearly yelled into Ralph's face.

The question only fueled Ralph's fire. The one that held so much hatred for the boy before him. It caused him to grit his teeth and push Jack off of him, causing the red-haired boy to take a couple steps backwards. Though Ralph took several steps towards Jack. An almost demented laugh escaping from him.

"You're asking me why I won't give you a chance!?" He yelled. "How about I tell you why I won't give you a chance. I trusted you! On the island, do you remember!? Or do you just choose to forget!? Did you choose to forget about the fact you took all my friends away from me!? Do you not remember that your little group of 'hunters' killed Simon!? Piggy!? The fact that you set the forest on fire to try to snuff me out!? _That you tried to kill me_?!" Ralph was screaming now. His face was slightly red, a vein popping from the side of his neck. "You decide to forget it, but guess what! I CAN'T, JACK. _I CAN'T._

"Do you ever get nightmares, Jack?" He asked more calmly, moments after he yelled. Ralph didn't even wait for an answer, however. "I bet you don't. I have nightmares. About everything you and your hunters put me through. Every damn night. I think about it whenever I see you. I always feel like I need to run whenever I see you." Ralph grit his teeth then, running his hands through his hair before he gripped his hair and pulled. "I can't sleep, I can't eat, I can't function. I always feel like I'm fucking being hunted. Because of YOU.

"And you want to know what the worst part is?" Ralph was more quiet now, his hands at his sides as he was in front of the door to leave. "You don't even want to admit the horrible things you've done to me. You act like we're supposed to… I don't even know what you're trying to do. Whatever it is, I don't want a part of it. Just leave me the hell alone."

With that, he opened the door, leaning against it. "That's why I won't give you a chance." As Ralph left, he didn't even dare look back.

* * *

It had taken a lot of begging and pleading from SamnEric but they had finally managed to convince Ralph to hang out with them after school. All Ralph wanted to do was go home, shower, and try to sleep. His day was rough. He was tired and he was gaining a nasty headache from the confrontation he had with Jack. Though, much to Ralph's mixed displeasure and gratefulness he was already walking towards the diner the twins had been hanging out at for the last few years they've been home.

"We know it's not the best-"

"-but they make the best chocolate cake."

"Yeah, oh Ralph, you should really try their tea. I think you'd like it," Eric said, smiling as they finally made it inside. "You do like tea, don't you Ralph?"

"He'd be an absolute nutter if he didn't."

"Leave him alone, Sam."

"Make me, Eric."

A small laugh escaped from Ralph as he heard the twins bickering, like usual. Though it was a nice type of bickering. Even though that sounded a bit strange. It was a nice contrast from the seriousness and drama-filled life Ralph had been experiencing from the first day he came back. Truthfully, it was just nice to have some friends who didn't actually want to kill him.

It was taking a lot for Ralph to trust SamnEric again. For the most part, Ralph already saw them as friends. He felt… normal around them.

"I do like tea actually. _Although_, coffee is much better than tea." _And helps me stay awake better._

"There's something wrong with you, Ralph," Sam said rather teasingly. Earning a light slap from Eric. "OW! What was that for!?"

"I just wanted you to shut up… I guess that didn't work."

"Oh whatever, Eric."

Ralph merely rolled his eyes as they continued to bicker when they made their way inside the diner. Immediately, the waitress had seated them and already given them their menus. Although, SamnEric didn't really need them. They already began ordering what they wanted while Ralph hurriedly tried to pick something. Anything. He ended up picking the supposed 'worst thing on the menu' but he didn't mind. He wasn't all too hungry anyway.

As they waited for their food to finish, they began talking about menial things. Girls, classes, and some obnoxious students. Making jokes which caused milk to come out of Sam' nose. Which caused Ralph to laugh hysterically and in all honesty, the first time the entire day.

Almost instantly, SamnEric became silent. They looked at each other, then at Ralph with a matched worried expression on their faces. It caused Ralph to raise a brow, though his expression faltered, he still had a smile on his face. "Wait, what is it? Milk out of the nose not funny anymore?"

They both shook their head. Sam tilted his head over to the door, and Ralph followed their gaze to find exactly someone who he didn't want to see. Jack and Roger.

A sick feeling overcame his stomach, and whatever good mood he was in had diminished entirely. His eyes caught Jack's in a moment and he couldn't exactly tell what was held in them. Ralph didn't want to know though. He quickly turned back to SamnEric who also had a significant change. It was obvious Ralph wasn't the only one who was so negatively affected by Jack and Roger. In a sick sense, it brought him a sense of relief to know he wasn't alone.

"Do they always come here?" Ralph asked quietly as he leaned forward towards SamnEric.

"No," Eric whispered back, trying hard not to look at the boys who were looking straight at them.

"They never came here before," Sam said, not in a whisper but not loud enough for them to hear. They were still too far away. "I don't know why they came today."

Though when Sam looked at Eric, they both silently agreed of what they both thought. This was the first time they brought Ralph here and the first time Jack and Roger came. Jack and Roger weren't stupid: they knew where SamnEric would take Ralph. They didn't have the heart to tell Ralph it was because of him.

"Maybe we should just go…" Eric murmured, sinking in his seat a bit as the two boys sat right across from them.

The moment Eric said that, the waitress came back with all of their orders. All three boys merely stared at their plates before looking over at each other. SamnEric looked at Ralph for what they should do. In all honesty, the twins still thought of Ralph as their leader.

Biting his lip, Ralph took a fork and poked at his plate. "Look, let's just pretend they're not here… If we pretend they're not here and that they don't bother us, they'll just leave…" _I think._

They nodded, before they all took bites from their plates. It was quiet until Sam spoke up, finally. "So, Ralph, I hear your birthday is coming up soon, yeah?"

Ralph nodded. "Yeah, in a couple days actually…"

"That's cool."

Everything was just so awkward at this point. Another great moment was ruined by Jack and Roger. Of all people, they had to show up to this damn diner. All Ralph wanted was to just go home and forget about this day. Or about this week. Really, all Ralph wanted to do was just disappear for a while. As morbid as that sounds, it seems as if no matter how hard he tried he couldn't escape from the damn island. Not when memories of the place kept reappearing everywhere.

It all just felt so overwhelming for Ralph.

There was nothing he could do to escape it. Even when he thought he was safe with his friends and even with adults and the security of the normal world. He still felt unsafe, he still felt hunted, and he still felt as if he was going to die any minute, any second.

Ralph's breathing increased and he could feel himself becoming warmer. The constant thoughts were coming too fast and he couldn't stop them. Would he ever be able to? He didn't think so. There was no way. It had been four years and the thoughts had never been this bad before. He thought he was getting better. He thought he was stronger than Jack. He thought he'd be able to handle whatever came at him.

No. Ralph was wrong. Everything was just so wrong.

He couldn't handle this.

He couldn't handle anything.

All he wanted was to just disappear.

"Ralph… Are you okay?" Eric asked, a look of concern etched onto his face.

Ralph tried to talk, to say something, anything but no words managed to come out. He was panting now, his heartbeat was fast, and his palms were clammy. It honestly felt as if he was dying. He stood up from the seat, but his legs were shaky. Almost too shaky to support himself. But, he pushed through. The pounding in his ears drowned out SamnEric's yelling and Roger's laughing. Ralph ran. He didn't know where. He just knew he had to run.

Finally, he stopped until he couldn't run any longer. He had made it toward a river bay. How he got there… Ralph will never know. He didn't even know there was a river so close to town. Ralph couldn't take it any longer, he went down on his knees. Not even noticing the harsh scrapes against his knees. He laid down on his back on the dirt as he stared up at the sky.

For the first time since the first day of school, Ralph cried.

* * *

Nobody talked about the incident from the diner. Except of course for Roger, who made fun of him every chance he had. Surprisingly, Jack didn't say anything. He just merely stared at Ralph before turning his attention back to Roger. That was surprising to Ralph who thought for sure Jack would be the one to tease him endlessly. It was a nice break from Jack's part at least.

"So, what are you gonna do for your birthday, Ralph?" Eric asked, walking beside Sam.

"Yeah, we thought we'd go to the bakery and get you a cake."

Ralph smiled only slightly, although it really shouldn't have even been considered a smile. It was worn, it was tired. "We shouldn't really do anything for my birthday. I'm fine…" He paused as he made his way to his locker. He put in the combination until he heard the click sound. "Thanks though. For the thought."

"I really think you should celebrate it though, Ralph." Eric said, with little confidence in his voice. His shoulders slumped slightly. "I mean, I think it's nice to have a day to be happy we've had another year to live. Don't you?"

Though the thought was nice, Eric was just pissing Ralph off. He honestly didn't even want to celebrate his birthday. He wasn't grateful for living. Ralph didn't even feel alive at this point.

He felt empty. He felt dead.

Well, Ralph wished he was dead.

"I'll probably do something with my family." That seemed to satisfy Eric, who was now quiet. Which Ralph was guiltily grateful for.

Ralph then proceeded to open his locker and retrieve his book for class. When he opened his locker, he was surprised to find a cupcake with decorative frosting and a card. It must have been recent for the candle on the cupcake was still lit. He took the card, opening it to read:

_Dear Ralph,_

_I well... I knew it was your birthday and I just wanted to say happy birthday.  
I can't really tell you who I am. You probably wouldn't like it too much.  
Well, I'm not exactly sure how you'd react to it.  
Enough rambling. I just really hope you have a good day._

_-J_

Sam was soon at Ralph's side, grinning from ear to ear. "Ooh, who's J, Ralph?!" He asked, taking the card from Ralph and reading it. "Oh, it's definitely Julie Matthews."

"Wait, who?" Ralph questioned.

"Julie Matthews. She's in our class, Ralph," Eric informed.

"Yeah, and this definitely looks like her handwriting."

A small smile spread across Eric's face. "Maybe she has a crush on you."

"I've never even talked to her before in my life," Ralph said, furrowing his brows. Why would anyone have a crush on him? Of all the things he expected, this was not one of them. Though the fact of someone having a crush on him did make him smile… only for a moment. Then he shook his head. "It's probably just a joke. Not real."

"You never know, Ralph," Sam told him, still grinning like a loon.

"Yeah, you are pretty good looking."

Sam and Ralph looked at Eric for a moment with a confused look on their face. Eric just gave a shrug. Sam and Ralph looked back at each other and began laughing yet again, before Eric too joined in.

Although truly, Eric didn't really know what they were laughing at.


	3. Deception

A/N: Well, it's summer time here! I had totally forgotten where I wanted to take this story since I started it last year, but I've thought about it and now I'm on track. ^-^ Constructive criticism is always welcome!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story.

* * *

With his chin on his desk, Ralph flicked his pencil and watched as it rolled back to him. Eric was fast asleep next to him, but nobody ever paid attention to the two of them in the back. Even if by some small miracle they did, Ralph had promised to cover for him. It was a system he and Eric both established in order to try and get more sleep throughout the day to make up for the lack of sleep they had at night. Ralph hardly slept due to the constant string of nightmares, but he didn't realize Eric didn't get any sleep either. He didn't want to bother Eric with questions about it.

The lecture the teacher was giving was honestly so boring Ralph couldn't help but believe everyone in this class was asleep. Ralph would be too, but he had other thoughts racing through his mind.

So many thoughts were related to Jack. Jack had seemed to be everywhere Ralph turned. It was getting to the point where Ralph thought he was hallucinating Jack ever being there – as if the nightmares were following him in reality. Ever since Jack confronted him in the gym and later at the diner (where Ralph had his panic attack), he hadn't left his mind. It was driving him insane – more insane than he usually felt.

A less annoying thought which kept circulating around in his mind was about the note he received on his birthday only yesterday. SamnEric had said it was from Julie Matthews, yet Ralph wasn't so sure. There was only the letter J sprawled out in neat, girly handwriting – there was no way they could have pinpointed it to Julie. There were not enough clues to pinpoint who actually the sender could be.

Though Ralph was sure it wasn't Julie who had sent it, he couldn't help but think about the possibility of her sending it. It led Ralph to steal quick glances of her in class when she wasn't looking his way, which was more often than not. She was a pretty girl with brown hair and light brown eyes who had small amounts of freckles all along her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. It was quite possible people could see her as plain-looking, but Ralph was only hung up on the possibility someone might actually have a crush on him.

"Ralph," a scratchy voice whispered next to him. Ralph turned his gaze to Eric, who had woken up from his short nap. His eyes were still nearly shut and his hair was slightly messy, and Ralph had the strongest urge to fix it. "Quit staring at her. You're starting to look a lot like Jack."

It was obvious Eric had meant that jab to be a joke, but Ralph could feel his stomach contort uncomfortable at the thought of being anything like Jack. "Sorry. I just can't stop thinking about the stupid letter."

"Or you can't stop thinking about her?" Eric questioned in a teasing voice.

Truthfully, Julie had entered Ralph's mind a couple of times which was only followed by how preposterous the idea of someone actually liking him was. The only person who took up most of Ralph's mind was the same person that had made him feel sick to his stomach. "Yeah," he finally said, sinking down in his seat a bit.

"Why don't you just talk to her and ask if she wrote it?"

"Maybe," Ralph said thoughtfully.

"Who knows what could happen, hm?" Eric had always been quite the positive one since Ralph had met up with him again. He was always so encouraging to Ralph, always trying to make it easier on him. It actually made Ralph really happy to know someone cared about him like Eric did.

Ralph nodded solemnly, determined to talk to her after school. "Hey, my turn to sleep, alright? You keep watch."

"Nighty night, Ralphie-poo."

"Shut up."

* * *

The locker room was a horrible place to Ralph. It smelt of disgusting body odor and of boys who hadn't showered in days. Luckily, Ralph had managed to only sit on the bench again, so he wouldn't have to stay in here too long. The sooner he changed, the sooner he could leave.

After changing from his gym clothes into normal school clothes, Ralph shut his locker and made his way towards the doors to leave. He was so close to the outside world of school, he could almost breathe in the cool, clean air.

"Ralph!"

Ralph had turned around, expecting it to be Jack or Roger, but instead found it to be his coach. He should have known by the voice, but it was very rare for anyone in gym to call his name other than them. Ralph only had two friends, and they weren't in this class.

"Yes, sir? What is it?" The words came out so fast that he was scared the coach wouldn't have been able to understand them. Hopefully the coach wouldn't catch on to how he didn't really want to be here. Ralph just wished the coach wouldn't take too long.

The coach looked down at Ralph for a moment with furrowed brows, before looking over at the clipboard he held in his hand. "I was looking over your marks for gym, and it seems to me you're falling behind and not doing any of the activities. I'm concerned you're not going to be able to run the five-mile run next week if you keep this up."

_Oh shit. _"I think I'd be able to handle it just fine, sir." Honestly, Ralph wasn't sure if he would be able to; he just wanted the coach to leave him alone so he could finally leave.

"I've never had a single person fail this and I'm not going to let you be the first." There was a short pause between them, and Ralph didn't quite know what to say. Thinking he was finished with this conversation, Ralph made his way to leave, but the coach continued to speak. Apparently he had some idea. "Maybe I can get someone to train you during class. I've got a couple of fit kids – uh, maybe Smith or perhaps Merridew would be better…"

Ralph hadn't been paying attention. He was too busy staring at the clock, looking at the hands as they ticked away. "Uh, sure, sir. I actually have to get going." Ralph turned to go look at the coach, before giving him a small smile. "Uh, see you tomorrow, sir."

"See you, Ralph."

* * *

"RALPH! Hey, Ralph! Wait up," Sam called, running towards Ralph to try and catch up to him. Eric was trailing not too far behind. "Jesus, Ralph!"

"Sorry," Ralph muttered under his breath, scanning the surrounding area for Julie who was nowhere to be found. In Ralph's mind, this whole confrontation was only supposed to take five minutes so he could head home. However, finding Julie in the sea of hundreds of students was actually more daunting than what he had originally planned.

"I thought we were going to the diner, Ralph," Sam whined childishly. Ralph had to fight from cringing. Ever since his panic attack he had there, he had tried to avoid the diner – he just didn't have the heart to tell Sam or Eric he didn't want to go there anymore.

"Um, I think he's looking for Julie," Eric informed his brother.

There was a hint of resentment in his voice, which sounded absolutely odd. The idea had seemed so implausible that Ralph had just written his tone off as just Eric being tired; Ralph knew he was definitely not too fun to be around when he was tired. Eric was one of the happiest, sweetest guys Ralph knew – the fact that he had other emotions besides that hadn't even crossed Ralph's mind.

"Oh, so she did write the letter then?"

_That's what I'm trying to figure out. _

Ralph was about to answer Sam, but just as he was about to open his mouth, he saw out of the corner of his eye just the girl he was looking for. Julie Matthews. Her long, brown hair swung from side to side as she walked the opposite direction from where Ralph was. There was another girl walking beside her, who Ralph figured to be one of her friends.

"Uh, maybe." Ralph mumbled, before waving to his friends. He already started walking towards her direction. "I'll see you guys later."

There was a moment of silence between the two brothers as they watched Ralph leave them behind. Sam was the first to turn away from the sight, looking over at Eric. The expression his brother wore was blank, and Sam furrowed his brows for a moment, trying to determine what on earth Eric was thinking about. Nothing sensible had come to his mind.

Sam scuffed the ground with the top of his shoe in a bit of frustration with himself. Ever since he and Eric had come home from the island, there was an unmistakable bump in their relationship. It wasn't anything big or threatening, but it left Sam and Eric feeling not as close as they were before the island. They had never talked about this bump, but had always acknowledged it. It was just how they handled uncomfortable situations.

That was what they did when they came back from the island. They had never talked about it; they merely brushed it under the rug and moved on with their lives.

"Are you okay, Eric?" Sam asked, his voice filled with concern, while nudging his brother in the arm.

Eric turned back to face Sam, who had given him a too-forced smile… even by Sam's standards. "Yeah. Just a little disappointed we're not hanging out with Ralph today." He paused for a moment. "I know, weird."

"Well, we've been hanging out with him every day since he's been back. It's a little surprising, yeah. He probably just wants some alone time, y'know?"

Eric paused for a moment, brows furrowed in thought. "It still sucks."

"I know."

* * *

_It's not a big deal, Ralph. You're just going to ask if she was the one who wrote the letter. If she didn't, just go home. No big deal._

Ralph was only a couple of steps behind Julie, taking in deep breaths to try and calm his nerves and his pounding heart. It felt as if it were the first day of school all over again. The anxiety of talking to new people still seemed to not have gone away. The only people he didn't feel anxious with were the same people he had spent all of his time with since he came to this school and his family.

Another deep breath. Ralph decided it was now or never. "Julie?"

Julie had turned around, smiling brightly at him. It would have seemed fake if Ralph had known any better. "Oh, hi. You're from my class aren't you? Roger?"

Ralph would have cringed - not because she didn't know his name, but because she had mistaken his name for that of the sociopath he hated. Instead of cringing, he merely shook his head. "No, um, I'm Ralph."

"Sorry about that, Ralph," Julie said, her cheeks dusted pink with what Ralph assumed to be embarrassment. Ralph had only shrugged in response.

There was a bit of an awkward silence with all of them, considering Julie and Ralph had never even spoken to each other at all before now. Her friend looked over at Julie, her face obviously looking like she just wanted to leave. Julie had shot her a stern look which Ralph couldn't help but smile at.

"So, uh, why are you here?" Realizing how rude that must have sounded, Julie quickly shook her head. As if she did that motion it would take her words back."Not that I don't mind you talking to me. It's just I'm a bit confused an-"

Taking out the letter from his back pocket, Ralph had handed the letter over to Julie. Julie took it cautiously, her brows furrowed in confusion as she looked it over.

"Did you write this?" Ralph asked slowly, his voice cracking slightly. If he could, he would have slapped himself – even if he couldn't control it.

Julie had opened the letter to look inside to read over the content once. Curiosity must have taken over her friend, for she had leaned over to steal a look at it, but Julie merely turned her body so her friend wouldn't be able to look at it. As he waited for her to finish, Ralph stared down at the ground, trying to distract himself; it wasn't working.

"Yeah, I did."

Ralph's head snapped up so quick he believed he could have broken it – if it were at all possible. Of all the scenarios which had played out in his head, he never had imagined Julie actually wrote the letter. Never mind the fact he wouldn't know where else to look if she actually didn't write it. Now that he knew she did, he didn't know how to respond at all besides giving her a modest smile.

"I… Uh, alright," Ralph breathed out, as if this whole ordeal made him unable to breathe. "Well, I um, better head home. I just wanted to know… And wow. I didn't think you'd say yes, but alright."

Julie merely giggled at him, before giving the letter back to him. "You should keep it, Ralph. I did write it for you." Ralph accepted it, putting it back into his back pocket quickly. "Um, I'll see you tomorrow? Maybe we can hang out after school if you're up for it?"

"That'd be… nice."

A sound of someone's throat clearing made Ralph and Julie look back at Julie's friend, who had her arms crossed. Julie laughed at the sight, while Ralph sheepishly put his hands in his pockets as he hunched his shoulders a bit.

"Well, I'd better get back to my clingy girlfriend," Julie joked, before turning back in the direction to where she was walking earlier. Throwing her gaze over her shoulder, she gave him a quick wave. "Bye Ralph! See you tomorrow!"

The two girls walked together silently, not turning back again to see where Ralph had walked back to. They both were left with their own thoughts until her friend finally broke the non-awkward silence. "You wrote that Ralph kid a letter?" Her friend didn't even allow Julie a chance to respond when she spoke again. "I didn't even know he came to this school until today."

Julie's smile fell for a slight moment, clinging to the book she was holding toward her chest tightly. "Well… no, not exactly…"

"JULIE!" Her friend screamed, her mouth hanging open in surprise. "You lied!? Why on God's green earth would you do that for?!"

"I don't know," Julie mumbled, biting her bottom lip slightly. "He just looked so sad."


End file.
